Kpop Power Rankings: September

Everyone on this site knows by now that Twice owns my heart. I’ve blogged about them more than once and am the proud owner of nineteen posters and over a hundred photocards. But what about the rest of Kpop, a genre which I really love to death? At the request of one of Teamliquid’s premier shitposters I put together a power ranking for which groups are at the top of my playlists right now. Some I discovered just a few weeks ago. Others I’ve been listening to for years. They’re all unhealthily catchy and the some of the best parts of my day. So, without further adieu, here’s my Kpop Group Power Rankings for September.

1. Twice

Simply put, Twice is the GOAT. They’re the only group I’d travel across the world to see and there’s a good reason why I’ve spent hundreds of dollars to get their merchandise shipped to me from Korea. Even though Twice isn’t currently populating my playlist of favorite tracks, I always smile when one of their songs comes on. It’s a poppy mix fueled by equal parts youthful energy and girlish charm. Songs are bright and bubbly like Touchdown, but they can also be soulful and sentimental. I had to fight back tears when listening to them perform One In A Million live and I can’t wait for another chance to see them in person.

2. Pristin

WE ARE PRISTIN! WE, WE ARE PRISTIN! I only happened upon Pristin recently, but they’ve already become one of my absolute favorites. They’ll got a similar vibe to Twice, very playful and vibrant, but one thing they do particularly well is creating flowing harmonies with multiple members at once. Pristin only has a few songs out, but I’ll be anxiously awaiting their next one. SCHXXL OUT is one of my favorite releases from any group in a long time and I can’t wait to see what they’ll come up with next.

3. WINNER

The first boy group on the rankings is veteran four man group, WINNER. WINNER has one of the most varied sounds in the business. They can lay it on thick with song like Empty, have me dancing to Really Really or slay it with a great rap verse like the one early in Smile Again that has my heart racing. Another group that I discovered recently, I instantly downloaded their entire discography. I was slow to get into boy groups, but WINNER is the perfect example of why I’m glad I did.

4. Red Velvet

ppalgan mat gunggeumhae honey! I’m shouting it as loudly as I can as I drive through the valleys. It’s just another great release from the queens of concepts, Red Velvet. I started listening to Red Velvet during the Happiness comeback and I’ve been in love since then. Dumb Dumb, a song of theirs that came out in fall 2015 remains my favorite music video to this day and an encapsulation of what makes them great. There’s The Velvet, the soulful ballads which give my bias, the angelic voiced Wendy, room to really shrine. Then there’s The Red. Funky, fiery, the sort of stuff that makes you want to move. This summer’s release was another exceptional one and further confirmation that Red Velvet is one of the best out there and a worthy successor to SNSD at SM Entertainment.

5. KARD

KARD is a bit of a departure from the first four groups in this list. They’re sound is smoother and more subdued. Songs like Hola Hola have a real chill, western EDM type feel to it. What really sets them apart from other groups on this list, is that this quartet features members of both genders. This gives them greater range than other traditional groups and gives their sound a unique edge. And edge is a good word, because KARD isn’t the cookie cutter marshmallows and sunshine that some groups are. They’re more mature and, although they’ve only released a few songs, they’ve already won me over.

6. Blackpink

I got on the Blackpink hype train a few weeks before their debut last summer. The release didn’t disappoint. Simply put, it bumped. BOOMBAYAH and Whistle were edgy and fierce, with electric visuals and equally energetic sound. I was in Korea for Blackpink’s last release and I remember exactly where I was when i first listened to As If It’s Your Last. I couldn’t have been more pleased. It was more of the same from Blackpink, which in this case is a great thing. After all, I love Jisoo’s singing and Lisa might just be my favorite rapper in the business. Blackpink may be a little low on this list due to everything I’ve been listening to lately, but there’s still one of my all time favorites.

7. BTS

BTS is the first guy group I really got into and it’s for good reason. I remember when Not Today came out at the same time as Twice’s Knock Knock. I was thinking to myself how I couldn’t stand BTS compared to my favorite idols. Turns out I listed to Not Today just enough times to get hooked. BTS has been around forever and have done every type of song under the song. They have forceful numbers like FIRE and Baepsae, but also shine on ballads like Spring Day. In between those three is a whole bunch of must listen tracks like Save Me and I Need U. I’d be remiss if I didn’t mention the absurdly goofy track 21st Century Girls. One of my guilty pleasures watching their performance of it on M Countdown and listening to the fangirls shriek.

8. SEVENTEEN

SEVENTEEN is the first of two groups on this list that I know far too little about. I really dig Highlight and Don’t Wanna Cry though, so I really should give them a closer luck. SEVENTEEN has a ton of people in it, thirteen to be exact, but they still have a really balanced sound. It’s modern and crisp, with catchy beats and silky lyrics. For now they come in at eight, but who knows where they might sit next month.

9. WJSN

Another group I’m just getting around to listening to. I only downloaded their stuff earlier this week, but so far my favorite songs of theirs are Happy, Bebe and their collaboration with MONSTA X, Do Better. They have some really crazy, eclectic beats like on Robot or Catch Me, something that really sets them apart from most groups. I’ll have to give them a more thorough listen, but for now they feel right in the ten spot.

10. I.O.I

I’m really late to the party on this one, but late is better than never, I suppose? Very Very Very maybe have fallen out of rotation after being spammed constantly at the end of 2016 by fellow Koreaboos, but I’m just starting to give it a listen. I need to download more songs from this now defunct group because the girls really ooze enthusiasm. Their charisma and liveliness really shines through in the song and i’m sure there’s more of it to be had elsewhere.

On September 23 2017 02:10 The_Red_Viper wrote:Haha thanks for doing this! You know my BP bias (though i obviously also don't know much other stuff) so seeign them at rank 6 already is pretty good <3

Will definitely check out most of it but i am a bit suprised to not see BigBang or GD in general :O

So when can i expect the next BP release btw? The kpop industry is still a bit confusing to me. PS: Great to see your passion btw :D

This is the people I'm listening to right now. All time greats like 4Minute and SNSD aren't on it because I haven't been jamming much to them lately. The same goes for some of my other favorites like AOA, Bestie, Got7, Sistar and EXID.

On September 23 2017 10:09 Disregard wrote:Pristin has some god awful songs though.

I don't really like anything on their earlier releases, but I love SCHXXL OUT.

On September 23 2017 15:11 Charoisaur wrote:No GFRIEND?

I actually don't love Gfriend. I think a lot of their songs are too similar sounding. That said Me Gustas Tu and Navillera are great. I just haven't been listening to them enough this month to make these rankings.

On September 24 2017 04:00 intotheheart wrote:How does this work, is it a reflection of KPop released in September, or your thoughts on the current scene as of September? And will you do a monthly/seasonal ranking of new stuff by groups?

This ranking is who i'm enjoying/listening to most so far this month. I don't know if there will be any follow ups, this was kind of written at Viper's behest.

I only know about half of these artists. I like KARD and Red Velvet a lot, KARD have a very dark, jungle-minor-key sort of sound to them, all three of their singles are very good and in a minor key...

And red velvet have a lot of good major-key-happy harmonies that sound very nice. And their videos are very charming..

Pristin, WJSN, and Blackpink have a less consistent success rate I think.

Is Kpop bigger than Jpop now?

I see it everywhere.

Also, I only like to listen to girl (female) groups, I just like feeling like a king while these peerless beauties sing to me...

No bully, but I only like FT Island as male kpops... I like their rock-and-roll vibe. Hmm Though Young Cream and The East Light are also good.. I like these vocal/instrument-focused men-singers/rappers. I don't like to watch men dance the same way I like to watch girls... But there's nothing wrong with a man being a good dancer.

I wish I could do choreography with those cute girls like the guys in KARD.

Maybe that's childish.

FTISLand "Shadows" is a very good, inspiring, song, kind of like koreans marching to war and glory... But I think it is in japanese, I tried to translate it to notecards in my korean-language studies, but I think it really is in japanese.

I hope more people get interested in Korea.

Woke this morning to the stinging lash///Every man rise from the ash/// Each betrayal begins with trust/// Every man returns to dust///